Criminal wanted list

Moscow adds Meta spokesperson to criminal wanted list, TASS reports

The reason Andy Stone was added to the list was not indicated, according to the Russian news agency.

BY LAURA KAYALI

Russia's interior ministry has added the spokesperson of U.S. tech giant Meta Andy Stone to its wanted list, Russian state-owned news agency TASS reported.

Stone "is wanted under an article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation,” the agency reported, citing the ministry's database. The reason Stone was added to the list was not indicated, according to the report.

In 2022, following Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine, Moscow officially designated the American tech company — which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — as a "terrorist and extremist" organization. That opened the door to heavier legal proceedings against its users in the country.

Western social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) were banned from Russia and are only accessible in the country through VPNs.

On Sunday, Russian authorities also said they downed 24 Ukrainian drones. The day before, Russia had launched the largest aerial attack against Ukraine since its invasion started, barraging the country with 75 Shahed drones.